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| Oppama J.H.S.(追浜中) | |
| Takatori J.H.S.(鷹取中) | |
| Taura J.H.S.(田浦中) | |
| Sakuradai J.H.S.(桜台中) | |
| Sakamoto J.H.S.(坂本中) | |
| Iriyamazu J.H.S.(不入斗中) | |
| Tokiwa J.H.S.(常葉中) | |
| Kugo J.H.S.(公郷中) | |
| Ikegami J.H.S.(池上中) | |
| Kinugasa J.H.S.(衣笠中) | |
| Ohyabe J.H.S.(大矢部中) | |
| Ohtsu J.H.S.(大津中) | |
| Mabori J.H.S.(馬堀中) | |
| Uraga J.H.S.(浦賀中) | |
| Uenodai J.H.S.(上の台中) | |
| Kamoi J.H.S.(鴨居中) | |
| Iwato J.H.S.(岩戸中) | |
| Kurihama J.H.S.(久里浜中) | |
| Shimmei J.H.S.(神明中) | |
| Nobi J.H.S.(野比中) | |
| Kitashitaura J.H.S(北下浦中) | |
| Nagasawa J.H.S.(長沢中) | |
| Nagai J.H.S.(長井中) | |
| Takeyama J.H.S.(武山中) | |
| Ohgusu J.H.S.(大楠中) | |
| Elementary School A (小学校Aブロック) |
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| Elementary School B (小学校Bブロック) |
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| Elementary School C (小学校Cブロック) |
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| Elementary School D (小学校Dブロック) |
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| Elementary School E (小学校Eブロック) |
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| Elementary School F (小学校Fブロック) |
Margaret B. Stubbs Iwato Junior High School |
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One of the good points about living in Japan is the mysteriousness of it all. The shrine festivals, the temple rituals, the tea ceremonies and the zen gardens. There are behavioral differences too between Japanese and Westerners that I find mysterious, even spooky. For example, how is it that Japanese people who appear to be sound asleep on the train are suddenly able to wake up when it’s their stop? Likewise, working in a Japanese junior high school offers its own mysteries. There are certain traits and habits that I can’t understand on my own, nor do I receive adequate explanations from my fellow teachers. Indeed, I feel that after seven months at Iwato and Kurihama Junior High Schools, I am left with more questions than answers. For example, why do half the teachers wear business suits to school, while the other half wears tracksuits? The answer is not that the latter half are PE teachers. One of my fellow English teachers is a constant surprise: One day he will be wearing a pair of Puma polyester track pants with a t-shirt adorned with unintelligible English. The next day he will be wearing a gray business suit with a starched white button-down shirt and a tie ? an outfit similar to one my grandfather wore to work at a brokerage firm for 40 years. This raises a related question: amongst those teachers who wear the non-athletic attire, why do they always choose black and grey clothing? Is it a requirement? A social norm? The teachers are not the only mysterious folks around school, the students also leave me wondering. One question I have concerns pencil bags. All students carry pencil bags. This is understandable because they need to have pens and pencils at the ready to carry on their studies. But many of their pencil bags are as big as my purse. As I am a nosy person, I have carefully inspected those pencil bags and discovered that they indeed contain nothing more than pencils, pens, markers and erasers. What I find shocking is that many contain 20 pens, 20 pencils, myriad markers and several erasers. I understand, of course, that it’s always good to be prepared and have a backup, but do you really need 19 pens to back up the one that may run out of ink? Whatever the case, it is not school supplies that truly leave me baffled on the job. The greatest mystery for me is what goes on at lunchtime. Now, I know what you are thinking: I’m one of those foreigners who is about to go on and on about all those ”weird” foods in the bento boxes. Not at all. This is my third year in Japan, and as a gourmand, I figured that out a long time ago. Admittedly, I am interested in how their mothers have time to make five of six different dishes every morning. I’ve made those dishes at home, and they are just as time-consuming as they look. That’s why I usually get my bento at Family Mart. But back to the subject, I will close by raising the Mother of all Mysteries: How on Earth do those kids (and teachers!) eat their bentos in 15 minutes? And sometimes, when the homeroom teachers have an announcement to make, they eat in 10 minutes!!! I’ve been trying to achieve this feat for months, and to no avail. Not once have I been able to eat everything in my bento box in that amount of time. This has become the bane of my existence on the job, and has made an obsessive-compulsive out of me. I obsess over whether or not the teacher will start lunch on time. I stare obsessively at my bento, eyeing each and every food item in the box, praying that the selected student will say “ki o tsuke rei” so that I can at last start eating. And once that precious moment has arrived, I find that I am compelled to evaluate the food such that I can identify the most filling food and eat it first. And somehow, during my lunchtime panic, the students and the homeroom teacher finish their lunch at what appears to be a leisurely pace. Is it a cultural difference? A genetic difference? Perhaps I’ll be able to answer that in the next ALT Gazette. |
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